On Tuesday, Chelsea take on Bundesliga outfit Schalke 04 in their third game of the Champions League group stages at the Veltins Arena in Gelsenkirchen, aiming to edge closer to the top of their group.
Though they have not been mesmerising or spectacular so far this season, Jose Mourinho’s side is never really about the beautiful game.
Regardless of what type of displays are put in, the Portuguese has always been a result oriented man and he will be more than happy to take all three points against Schalke on Tuesday in any way his players can.
However, for several reasons, Chelsea will head into this particular game in high spirits with the first reason being the crowded treatment table at Schalke. The Blues have up to eight first team players unavailable through various injuries.
However, as they have proven in the past, Schalke can rise to the occasion without their best players.
Scoring goals not a big problem
Despite what should be considered a very indifferent start to the new campaign, Schalke have shipped in goals for fun. So far, the Germans have scored 17 goals in the league which seems quite strange considering the fact that Schalke have not been that good at dominating possession in all competitions.
Mentally tough defence
As is the case with top German sides, Schalke are a tough unit to breakdown and are yet to concede in the Champions League having played two games so far. Though there have been a few evidences of lapses in concentration, the Royal Blues have excellent defenders who are quite adept at closing down spaces which means that the likes of Eden Hazard, Oscar and Juan Mata will have to be more creative than they have been so far this season.
The Boateng factor
Since sealing the transfer of Kevin-Prince Boateng from AC Milan, Jens Keller has finally found a man who can give ample support to the midfield and score goals on a regular basis. The Ghanaian has fit in perfectly at the club and has almost single-handedly tidied things around at Schalke.
With the likes of Jefferson Farfan, Jermaine Jones, Sead Kolasinac, Kyriakos Papadopulos and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar still lying on the treatment table, Boateng has made sure that the team’s domestic and European campaign is not derailed.
Young duo out to impress
Teenagers Leon Goretzka and Max Meyer scored a goal each in the 3-2 win over Eintracht Braunschweig on Saturday and Keller has already said that the duo will start the game against Mourinho’s men. Despite being relatively new to professional football, the teenagers have already shown that they can match the exploits of young Julian Draxler who is such a valuable member of the team. And after scoring such important goals, the youngsters will be eager to impress further against a Chelsea side that will definitely be wary of the hosts.
